I just keep falling now that you're gone
by Havendance
Summary: After losing Marinette, Adrien will do anything to get her back, even becoming the very villain he once fought. When Papillion rises once again over Paris, Emma and Louis find a ring and a pair of earrings in their rooms they become the new Ladybug and Chat Noir. And so, Adrien fights his children, and Emma and Louis fight their Father. None of them know who their enemy really is.


**AN: Quick info before you read. You can skip this if you want. In this world a friend reveal took place between Alya, Nino, Marinette, and Adrien, I'm not bringing Fox!Alya or Bee!Chloe, and when Ladybug and Chat Noir defeated Papillion, they retrieved his miraculous but failed to discover who he was.**

* * *

Before they had kids, Adrien's greatest fear was that he would end up like his Father. Sure, he had other fears: losing the people he loved, dinosaurs (he had never gotten over that time Ladybug had jumped into the mouth of one), drowning (being Chat Noir had done nothing for that one), and he could never make it all the way through any of the horror movies that Marinette and Nino insisted on watching. But turning into his Father was the one that seemed the most real and threatening, as if one day he would just decide to hole up in his office and discover that whatever was going on in there was so much more important than spending time with his family.

So, when his and Marinette's first children were born, (Marinette had twins! Two little bundles of joy that never seemed to sleep or be quiet at the same time. Adrien had never before loved sleep as much as he did then.) he vowed to be the Father that he had always wanted to have. He attended school plays and soccer games, helped out with school projects and homework, and kissed away the skinned knees and other little boo-boos that came with the adventures of childhood.

And, over time, he very nearly forgot about the fear that had once seemed to be so real and dangerous.

Emma and Louis (and later little Hugo) were the lights of his life. Adrien couldn't see why his Father hadn't seen the joy that came with little children. How they laughed and cried and filled life with joy and wonder. But he didn't like to think about it much, there was no need to dwell on the past when the future looked so bright.

Adrien got a job that would allow him to work from home. Marinette was always rushing about what with one thing or another(She had achieved her dream of becoming a fashion designer, Adrien only wished that it didn't make her so busy). So he stayed at home and cooked(he wasn't as good as Marinette, but he was getting better) and cleaned and looked after the kids. She had her dream job, and he had all the time in the world to spend with his kids. They were both happy and their life was as close to perfect as a life could get.

When they discovered that Marinette was expecting again, Adrien was overjoyed at first. But all too soon, joy turned to worry, and worry to all out fear when she diagnosed with cancer. It didn't seem to be real. How could Marinette, energetic, healthy Marinette, who never got sick have cancer? Adrien didn't want to believe it. She could beat anything, he had seen her do it often enough.

And Marinette, Marinette had always been the brave one. She looked her doctors in the eye and told them that her baby was her number one priority and she was not going to sign up for any treatments that could potentially harm the little girl.

The doctors tried to talk her out of it. They tried to tell her that if she carried the child to term, treatments would likely be less effective and her chances of survival would go down. Way down. They told her that if she insisted on going through with this, it would kill her. She didn't budge an inch. She never budged an inch.

Adrien tried to talk her out of it. It didn't change her mind. She wouldn't listen to his pleas. The strong will and determination that he had always loved about her before, now became a source of heartbreak.

So Adrien stopped trying. What else was he supposed to do? He became the strong, supportive spouse. He tried to act like nothing was wrong, like it could get better, like he wasn't terrified and sad and happy all at once everytime that he talked to her, everytime he heard her laugh, everytime she showed him one of her designs. She never slowed down even when she was sick. It was just how she was.

He wanted to tell her to just get an abortion, that they could have other kids but there would never be another Marinette. He wanted to scream and shout and tell her that he didn't want her to die, that he would pay any price to keep her by his side. But it wouldn't do anything. Marinette had been a hero for far to long to stop now.

She gave birth to a beautiful baby girl who the splitting image of her mother. Marinette refused to let anyone else hold little Marie, even as her condition rapidly deteriorated despite the best treatment the hospital could offer. In the end,Adrien could only watch as she slowly died despite the efforts of the doctors.

He was devastated.

Without Marinette, his life was grey where it had once been filled with color. The things that had once brought him joy with her by his side, now only brought sadness, painful reminders of what he had lost.

Friends brought meals and condolences. They told stories of their fond memories of her and wore the clothes that she had designed for them. They laughed and cried and remembered at the funeral. They didn't know anything.

Casseroles wouldn't bring his wife back, and the memories they shared were mere shadows of who she had been. Nothing could recreate the vivacity that she had had, the wonder and joy that she had brought to his life. The energy and magic that seemed to spread to anything she touched.

Adrien tolerated their well-meaning comments for a time, but eventually he asked them to leave. He needed time alone with his thoughts.

If only there was a way to bring her back.

The thought pervaded his mind. It creeped into every corner, growing like a weed, it's long tendrils reaching into every corner of his mind. Just as all roads lead to Rome, all thoughts he had seemed to lead back to that one enduring point.

No. There was no use in thinking about things like that. It was impossible. No matter what he wished she was still dead. And death was irreversible.

Or was it?

He remembered something he had heard a long time ago: The ladybug and black cat miraculouses together could grant the power of a god. Would it be enough power to bring someone back from the dead? Was there a way for him to see Marinette again? To hear her teasing laugh and feel the warmth of her embrace?

If there was, Adrien was willing to pay any price.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Louis knew Emma was the responsible one, everyone knew. And, for the most part, he saw no reason to change that. His older sister (by 15 minutes, though sometimes he wished it was longer) was so much more competent than him. She could organize their family blindfolded. With one arm tied behind her back. Who was he to get in her way?

The two of them were like night and day. She had black hair that was always pulled back neatly in a ponytail and Papa's green eyes. He had longish blond hair that was all shaggy and never seemed to cooperate with him and Maman's blue eyes. She was organised and precise. She never turned in anything late, if Louis turned in anything on time, it was the exception, not the rule. He was of what Maman used to call an "artistic temperament". He called it not paying attention to anything he didn't care about and devoting all his time to things that did. He had claimed the role of family slack off early on in life and was loathe to give it up any time soon.

But now, Maman was dead, and Papa rarely showed up except for meals, and even then it wasn't surprising if his chair was empty. Emma was starting to look very frazzled(which was never a good sign, even before she started running the house), and they couldn't live on casseroles forever. If they did, Louis was going to be sick from casserole overdose. Probably sooner rather than later.

So, after a lot of intensive soul searching, he decided to try his hand at cooking. It couldn't be that different from painting or sculpting, right? After all, you just mix together a bunch of ingredients, throw it in the oven, and all of a sudden you've got something delicious. Food was like art that you appreciated with your stomach instead of your eyes. And Louis was an artist. An artist who was going to be sick if he had to eat another casserole. Which was more than enough motivation for him to decide to actually do something around the house for once. He was not giving up his role as family slack off, his motivations were purely selfish.

Despite his self proclaimed role as a slack off, he wasn't totally useless, despite what his friends might think. Everyone around him was treating him like he was made of glass, acting like he might break or burst into tears at any minute. Sure, his Maman was dead, and he was sad and all, but people died all the time, and life moved on. He just wasn't going to think about how it wasn't the same without her there to admire his art, or draw with him, or make cookies after a long day while he just talked and she just listened. Well, maybe he missed her a little, but it was just easier not to think about it.

Cooking. He was focusing on cooking. He was most definitely not moping around. Louis did not mope. He was a joker, a happy go lucky sort of guy, one who was in no way still mourning over his mother's death, and one who was focusing on cooking.

As soon as he started looking around the kitchen, Louis realised he had a problem: what should he make? He hadn't thought this far in advance. Well, it should definitely be something simple. Maybe… spaghetti? Spaghetti was easy enough, you just tossed some noodles into boiling water and dumped a jar of sauce over it. Simple.

After taking a quick inventory of the kitchen, Louis ran out the door and down to the supermarket to get some spaghetti sauce. He left the water boiling with the pasta in it.

He was never a very patient sort of fellow, so it would it just be easier if he killed two birds with one stone for the prep work.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Adrien looked down at the butterfly brooch in his hand. It seemed to small and innocent to have caused such terror and chaos in Paris more than twenty years ago. The last man who had last worn this brooch had been a villain. There was no denying that. To say that Adrien... disliked the reputation that the broach had developed, was an understatement. But it was the only miraculous that he could get his hands on. And, desperate times, called for desperate measures.

It was only temporary, he told himself, only until he could get his hands on the ladybug and black cat miraculouses and bring back Marinette. Then he would give it back. He wasn't going to keep it any longer than he had to. He couldn't imagine wanting to keep it any longer than he had to.

He put on the brooch(it was so easy to do, why had he been delaying for so long?) and uttered the transformation phrase that Nooroo had told him. It was one of the few things that the kwami had seen fit to share after discovering that he was being misused once again (Nooroo's words, not his). Butterflies flew around him as the transformation took place. It was done in an instant. So much more efficient than Chat Noir's had been.

Adrien looked out over the city through new eyes, trying to remember what little he knew about the butterfly miraculous and it's powers. Nooroo had clammed up surprisingly quickly, so Adrien had been left with only what little prior knowledge he had gained from being Chat Noir. He knew that the butterfly wielder could send out the akumas to create champions (or villains as the case may be), and he knew that the wielder could communicate telepathically with his champions. But he had no idea how to find a champion in the first place.

So, he did the only thing he could think to do. He trusted his instincts, sending out his mind to see through the eyes of hundreds of butterflies that roamed throughout the city. It felt as natural to him as breathing.

So this was how Papillion had seen Paris. He could see everything. Adrien wondered how their identities had never been discovered, if this was the view that his nemesis had seen everyday. People were beacons of emotion: joy, hate, anger, excitement, contentment, calm, nervousness, fear, all of them were calling out to him. He knew instinctively that only some would accept what he had to offer.

There. A man. He was different than the rest somehow. Practically glowing with ambition, doubt, anger and greed. Adrien could harness this. He could make this man into just the tool he needed to gain the miraculouses.

He sent out an akuma, watching through it's eyes as it soared above Paris and sank into something in the man's bag.

A link was established. All of sudden Adrien could feel this man. It was as if he had somehow stepped through a door and into this man's mind. He could the his hopes, dreams, ambitions, fears, and darkest secrets. He could see just the strings he needed to pull in order to get what he wanted.

It made him feel... guilty, for what he was about to do. But Marinette was worth it. She was worth anything and everything.

"Dowsing Rob. I can give you the power to find and take whatever you want." As soon as Adrien said this he knew that he could do it. It was an overwhelming power that he had access to."In exchange, I want you to... acquire something for me." He let the man see a memory: a ring and a pair of earring became crystal clear in both of their minds. "Do we have a deal?"

There was never any doubt as to what the answer would be.

"Yes, we do," Dousing Rob said as he transformed. Adrien watched as he cackled evilly and ran off, wreaking chaos on the city as he went.

It hurt a little, knowing he was responsible for destroying the very city that he had once fought so hard to protect. But it was only for a little while. Only until he got what he wanted. Then he'd stop. Then he'd make it better. He wasn't even doing that much damage compared to some of Papillon's champions. He was justified in what he was doing.

The end justified the means. It had to.

He had to make his family whole again.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Emma walked into the kitchen to discover that someone had left a pot boiling over on the stove. She quickly moved the pot off the heat, looked around at the mess in the kitchen and broke out in hysterical laughter. It was either that or cry. And at that moment, the last thing Emma wanted to do was cry.

She was holding a screaming baby (little Marie had colic) and was overwhelmed by housework. The kitchen she was standing in was quickly becoming another item on her to-do list, which was long enough as it was. She hadn't taken a shower or gotten a decent night's sleep in who knows how long. Emma was just trying to keep everything together. And failing, or, at least that's what it felt like half the time.

The radio constantly yelling at her about some crazy person named Dowsing Rob who was running around doing who knows what and just causing general chaos was doing nothing really hoped that he wasn't getting into too much trouble.

Long story short, crying was going to add nothing to the situation. If anything, it would make the whole thing worse worse.

Despite that, when Louis walked in a little while later, holding a jar of spaghetti sauce, Emma was leaning against the wall, holding little Marie (who was still crying), and half crying, half laughing herself. She couldn't focus on the story that he was telling her. Something about a supervillain?

Eventually, her sanity returned. That didn't mean that things made any more sense. Nothing was making any sense right now.

The two of them listened to the radio over Marie's screams as they salvaged what they could of Louis' spaghetti. Emma didn't know what exactly to make of these "akumas" that were attacking Paris all of a sudden. They had learned about something similar in school, but a half remembered social studies unit was nothing compared to the craziness that was happening here and now. Maybe, she should've payed more attention to that unit, it didn't seem very import at the time.

Fortunately for her sanity, Emma knew someone who did know what was going on.

Aunt Alya was considered to be one of the top experts on the akuma attacks that had happened decades ago, which was pretty impressive considering she had barely been a teenager at the time. (Aunt Alya and Uncle Nino weren't really their aunt and uncle by blood, but the two of them had been close friends with her parents, so they were practically family in all the ways that really counted.) She was also willing to come over for dinner on a moment's notice, and bring pizza with her (which was a relief, since Louis' food was more or less inedible).

With her whole family around the table (except Papa, but he was gone half the time anyways), Emma felt herself relaxing, in spite of the craziness going on in Paris right outside her door.

"I was around your age when the first akumas showed up," Aunt Alya said enthusiastically. "The attacks only lasted for a few years, but they sure were an interesting few years."

"They were interesting, as in that one ancient curse." Uncle Nino chuckled and shook his head. "You should've seen her back then. She chased any akuma that showed up. Nearly got herself killed more than a few times."

"Hey! Ladybug and Chat Noir saved me all of those times." Aunt Alya crossed her arms and glared at Uncle Nino, the effect was ruined by the grin on her face.

"She chased those two around too." Uncle Nino stage whispered to the rest of the table. "Always dragged me around with her. Right?" He elbowed her, smiling.

"You know you love me." Aunt Alya gave him a playful kiss, ignoring Hugo blushing on the other end of the table. "We were such lovebirds back then, nearly as bad as Adrien and Marinette." She gave a little smile.

"Maman and Papa were in love all the way back then?" Louis asked, eyes wide. He was such a romantic.

"Yeah, your Maman had the biggest crush on your Papa, she was obsessed with him. Our whole class had a pool going on, betting on when they'd get together," Aunt Alya reminisced. "They'd always disappear during the akuma attacks. We all thought that they were taking advantage of the chaos to get some privacy."

Uncle Nino nodded. "They always missed the coolest parts, like all the times that Ladybug and Chat Noir saved Alya," he finished pointedly.

"Nino!" Aunt Alya glared at him before changing the subject. "Speaking of Ladybug and Chat Noir, I wonder if he'll show up again. Maybe I'll have to start up the Ladyblog again."

"There'll probably be a new pair of heros for you to chase, Alya. It's been over twenty years, he's probably retired or something."

"Chat Noir might show," she insisted. "He's never been one to stray from a fight. He's not bad, more than a little cocky in person, but he still gets the job done. He doesn't hold a candle to Ladybug though, she's the best."

"You've met them?" Hugo asked, eyes wide.

"Sure have," Aunt Alya bragged. " I've interviewed them both too."

"What's Ladybug like?" Hugo asked, leaning forward. "She's my favorite."

Aunt Alya and Uncle Nino exchanged a glance so quick that Emma almost thought that she imagined it.

"Ladybug's the best," Aunt Alya said after hesitating for barely a heartbeat.

"Yeah, she's really brave and smart," Uncle Nino added.

"She told me some amazing stories during our interview."

"She saved Jagged Stone once."

"And she jumped into the mouth of a T-rex another time." Aunt Alya gestured emphatically with her hands.

"She's every bit as great as the stories.

"She's better than the stories," Uncle Nino corrected.

"Definitely." Aunt Alya nodded in agreement.

After that, the conversation moved on to other subjects. Aunt Alya and Uncle Nino left after supper, Aunt Alya saying something about keeping an eye out for new developments. Uncle Nino just shook his head and winked at them over his shoulder, telling them to keep safe. Emma knew that he really didn't mind Aunt Alya dragging him around, even though he made a big deal about.

Just knowing that this had happened before was comforting. Knowing that Aunt Alya and Uncle Nino were confident that everything would work out was even more so. Emma hoped that if Ladybug and Chat Noir were out there, they'd show up soon.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Louis wasn't sure who had left the earrings on his bed. They were plain black and in a box that looked vaguely chinese in design. Maybe it was Maman's, but if it was, it still didn't explain how it had gotten there. Had Emma or Aunt Alya left it for him? Who cares, Louis thought they look cool enough. With that he tried them on.

He felt a surge of power coming from somewhere. That was definitely weird. Then there was this strange popping noise and suddenly a little red and black creature (Mouse? Hamster? Flying rodent?) appeared before him.

"Hi!" it said. "My name is Tikki. You have been chosen to wield the ladybug miraculous!"

Weird. Very, very weird. Louis did what anyone would do in this situation, he swatted at the thing and screamed. At least, he screamed until he remembered that Marie was a light sleeper and Emma would kill him if she woke up.

He stopped screaming. The thing apparently took this as a sign that he had accepted its presence and it immediately started talking about luck and kwamis or something like that made no sense, instead of saying anything that he would expect it to, like "Take me to your leader"(Louis watched a lot of science fiction movies).

Whatever it was, Louis wanted it out of his room. he slammed a basket over it and threw it out the window. There, it was finally gone.

Unfortunately, the thing just flew back in through the windows. How did it fly through the windows? This day just kept getting weirder and weirder. When had things stopped making sense? Louis decided that he needed a second opinion. He quickly slammed a jar over the thing (for some reason it stayed put this time) and went off to find Emma. She would know what to do. She always did.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Emma almost didn't notice the ring. She was exhausted and worried, so it wasn't until she sat down and felt a lump where there wasn't before, that she noticed it. After she got up to see just what it was that she had sat on, she examined the box. It was red and black, and vaguely chinese in design. Had Uncle Nino or Aunt Alya left it there? Or was it Louis' idea of a prank? If it was, it wasn't very funny.

After staring at it for a while, she opened it. Inside was a plain silver ring, simple and elegant.

She almost didn't put it on.

She almost closed up the box and ignored in favor of getting at least a little sleep before little Marie woke up again. But the idea of wearing it was vaguely appealing, almost as if the ring was calling to her.

That was stupid. Rings were inanimate objects, she must be going delirious from exhaustion.

But she put it on anyway.

And nearly flung it off again when a black creature came flying out, screaming "Foooooooood!"

"Shhh!" Emma hushed automatically. "Don't wake the baby," she said in an urgent whisper. As soon as the words left her mouth she realised that it sounded really kind of crazy. Some weird crazy demon thing shows up in her room and her first reaction was to tell it to shut up?

Regardless of whether she was sane or not, the creature ignored her, biting at random things in her room. Not that there was anything that he could fit down his gullet in the first place since she had put up all the choking hazards after little Marie was born.

"I must be hallucinating," Emma thought out loud. She couldn't think of any other possible explanation for what was happening.

"You're not," the thing said from wherever it was, she had lost track of it. "The name's Plagg, kwami of destruction, I give you the power of bad luck and destruction. You can harness those powers by saying 'claws out'. Capieche? Now, do you have anything to eat around here?"

"Claws out?" Nothing happened. She was most definitely hallucinating. It must of been the mushrooms on the pizza. Maybe they had put hallucinogenic mushrooms on the pizza by accident. That could happen, right?

"Say it like you mean it, kid. And there's no way I'm transforming on an empty stomach. Got any camembert?"

"No, who carries around camembert?" This was making less and less sense the more time passed. Emma stared at the wall across from her. At least that made sense.

"My last wielder did. Hopefully you will too, I'm starving over here."

Louis chose that moment to burst into her room clutching a jar in his hands.

"Emma, help me. There's this weird talking bug-bird thing in my room, what do I do with it?" Louis asked her in a frantic rush. Emma just blinked a few times as he revealed a red and black creature that looked eerily similar to the black creature that was pestering her. Maybe they were both hallucinating. The idea was slightly comforting.

"Do you think those mushrooms on the were pizza hallucinogenic by any chance?" Emma hoped that his answer would be yes. It would make so much more sense than whatever was going on right now.

"No?" Louis tilted his head. "What's that got to do with anything?"

"Nothing," Emma hurriedly answered. So all of this was really happening. What a shame.

"Hey, Tikki. Any luck with your chosen. I'm getting nowhere with mine," the black creature called out.

"Plagg! You're scaring yours!" the red creature scolded.

"You don't look like you're doing much better."

The two started to bicker. Loudly.

"Quiet! Marie's sleeping!" Emma urgently whispered yet again. "Let's go downstairs to the kitchen to talk this out." The last thing she wanted was for Marie to start screaming again.

"Finally, maybe you'll actually have something to eat down there," the black creature complained.

"Plagg, we have more important things to worry about than food!"

The two creatures started to argue again. Why couldn't she just be a normal evening for once?

"Downstairs. Now," Emma said in what Louis called her "Maman voice". She was done with all of this.

They were quiet all the way down.

"So, what do you guys eat" Louis asked, breaking the silence when they finally arrived in the kitchen.

"Cookies, though any pastry will do."

"Cheese. Primarily camembert."

"We don't have any camembert. We have a little reblochon," Emma said.

"Fine, that will do for now. But you can't expect me to perform well without camembert."

"Plagg," the red creature said in a warning tone.

"Fine, fine. I'm just saying, I've got standards."

"Can someone just please explain what's going on?" Emma asked, rubbing her forehead as Louis lay plates of food in front of the creatures.

"My name is Tikki," The red creature said in between bites of cookie. "And this is Plagg." She gestured to the black creature.

"Hey, I mentioned that!" Plagg said.

Tikki glared at him. "Plagg and I are kwamis, beings of great power. We can grant that power to our chosen wielder," Tikki said between bites. "Currently the butterfly miraculous is being misused by someone who is causing these akumas to appear. You two were chosen to fight the akumas and take back the butterfly miraculous."

"So we get to be the superheroes who fight the supervillain?" Louis asked. "Just like in the comic books?"

"Mmhmm," Tikki nodded.

"Cool!"

"That's what I was trying to tell you," Plagg muttered from his plate of cheese.

"Like Ladybug and Chat Noir?" Louis asked eagerly.

Tikki nodded. "Just like them. You two will be the new Ladybug and Chat Noir."

This piqued Emma's interest. "Tell me more."

"Of course." Tikki smiled.

The two teenagers sat spellbound as the kwamis explained everything.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Adrien urged on his champion. The man still hadn't found the miraculouses and it was nearly midnight now. He had given the man the power he needed to succeed, why was he failing?

He reached out to the man's mind to give it a shove in the right direction, only to discover that something had changed. His minion wasn't focusing on finding the miraculouses, he was fighting something. Or someone. Possibly multiple someones. Who could it be? Who would be foolish enough to pick a fight with an akuma? Adrien needed to know more. He looked through his champion's eyes.

When he first saw the ladybug, he thought it was Marinette back from the dead somehow. The hero moved with the same grace at the root of their movements, even if they lacked the skill that Marinette had developed over years of practice. He took a closer look

No. Upon further inspection, it clearly wasn't his ladybug. This Ladybug was male. He was a child, no more than a boy. Who was this person who thought that he could take the place of Marinette? No one would be able to fill the shadow that she had cast as Ladybug.

This new hero was to flamboyant, to showy. His costume was flashier than Marinette's simple one. It looked more like the costume of a rogue from a period romance drama that of a of a wasn't even a tenth of the Ladybug that Marinette had been. He had a gun for heaven's sakes. What sort of ladybug wielded a gun? How was he supposed to fight with that?

There was another Chat Noir as well, but she was inconsequential. She didn't make his blood boil with her very existence like this new Ladybug did.

The two of them were children, they didn't stand a chance, Adrien thought, pushing back the little part telling him that he and Marinette had only been children when they had first started. But that was different. Sure, they had been bumbling teenagers at first, struggling to find their footing. But nobody had known what was going on. Not even Papillion. Everyone had been figuring stuff out, bit by bit.

This time, Adrien had the advantage. He knew exactly what he needed to do.

He had to get their miraculouses. It was the only way. But taking jewels from heroes would be a whole lot harder than taking them from boxes in the possession of an old who was on the verge of dieing anyway. And if they were the heroes, that meant that he was a villain, at least in the eyes of the public. He probably should've thought of that sooner, but there were more important things on his mind then.

Adrien was not a villain by nature. But he would do anything to bring her back, and if that meant filling a role that was so contrary to his nature, so be it. It was only for a little while anyway. Only until he got the miraculouses.

Only until he could make things right.

Only until everything went back to normal.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Alya was psyched. There was a new Ladybug and Chat Noir and she was in the middle of it, just like she always was. This wasn't like last time. Last time she had been young, inexperienced and impulsive. Now, she was one of the experts on Ladybug and Chat Noir and a professional reporter to boot. There was no way she was letting this opportunity get away.

Alya had been the first to see the two of them fighting over Paris. She had been the first on the scene to record and share with the world just what it was that was going on. Just like last time. When she really thought about it, not much had changed, really.

It was clear that these new heroes were still young and learning. They didn't have the ease or skill that the last two had had. That would come with time. This Ladybug remembered to purify the akuma. He had learned from his predecessor's mistakes. Marinette would be proud if she could see her legacy being carried on.

They introduced themselves as the new Ladybug and Chat Noir before disappearing into the night, leaving as just as many questions as they had answered.

It was neat seeing how the new generation of heroes looked so different from the first. Ladybug had a dramatic cape and a mask that looked like a pirate's bandana. He almost looked like a rakish hero, the effect was only ruined by the red with black spots that seemed to come with the territory. Chat Noir on the other hand, had a much simpler outfit. It was reminiscent of Adrien's costume, only this one had a very short poncho-ish cape, and this hero wielded a pair of daggers instead of a staff.

This was definitely the most exciting thing that had happened in a long time. Alya wanted to learn everything she could about what was going on.

She'd have to ask Adrien if he knew anything about these new heroes. He and Marinette claimed that they had given up their powers after defeating Papillion and taking his miraculous, but he couldn't be completely ignorant could he?

Alya had so many questions that wanted answering. Was Papillion back? She thought had thought that the villain had disappeared for good after Ladybug and Chat Noir had defeated him the first time. If not, who was this new villain? What were they after? What were these new heroes like? There was so much to learn and so little time.

It Alya's job to get answers, and there was no way anything was going to change now. Not when things needed knowing the most.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Louis loved the feeling of confidence and freedom that came with transforming into Ladybug. He could be just like those dashing rogues in books that were always rescuing swooning maidens and swinging about on conveniently placed vines or ropes.

He loved running across the rooftops with inhuman speed and skill. (He wished he could fly, but Tikki said that power would come with time.) He loved the feeling of pride that came with saving his home every day. He loved the euphoric feeling he got whenever he used Miraculous Ladybug.

He loved nearly everything about being Ladybug. The only thing he didn't love, was that he was supposed to lead.

Louis couldn't lead. He's always been that one guy who slacked off in group projects and let the others do all the work. Emma had always the leader. She was good at it. But now, Emma was looking to him for plans since he was the one with the magical power that gave him whatever he needed to win.

Tikki told him that as a Ladybug he would be creative, charismatic, confident, lucky, and a natural leader. Sure, he was definitely creative and he had a lot of friends (did that make him charismatic?). People told him that he was confident (whenever he actually did something, which was rare). But a natural leader? That was hard to swallow.

Yet, surprisingly, he found that this whole hero thing was coming easily to him. Emma took the lead around the house, since Papa was showing up less and less, but on the battlefield, Louis took the lead. Things seemed simple there. It was like the videogames that Hugo played, or the adventure novels he read, only in real life. Strategies and plans just popped into his head. And they worked. (No one was more surprised than him the first time that happened.)

So, to explore this new leader aspect of himself, Louis decided that he should go and ask Papa about the first time that the akumas attacked Paris. Papa had been right in the thick of it after all, nearly all of his classmates had gotten akumatised at one point or another. When Louis first heard that, he had thought that it was one crazy coincidence. Surely he would know something that would make his job at least a little easier. He'd ask Tikki, but the kwami seemed to be sworn to secrecy on the matters of past wielders, even (or especially) the ones from only a generation ago.

It was hard to get a chance to talk to Papa. Nowadays, it felt like he only showed up at home to eat and sleep and sometimes he didn't even do that. Louis wasn't sure if that was because Papa felt that his work was just a lot more important, or because he was hiding from responsibilities. Eventually though, he found his chance to make his move.

"Papa," Louis asked. "What was it like the first time Papillion attacked Paris?"

"The first time?" Papa made a strange face.

"Yeah, when you and Maman were younger. What were the akumas like?" Louis knew all about Ladybug and Chat Noir, everyone knew about them. They always learned about the heroes in school, never the villains, mainly because the victims were normal, everyday people who didn't deserve to be remembered only for the one bad day that they had. That's what they were taught at least.

"That was the only time Papillion attacked."

"Everyone's saying that he's come back." Who else could it be?

"We don't know that for sure." Papa's tone was shorter than it usually was.

Louis shrugged. "We don't know much of anything. So, could you tell me what the akumas were like." He hoped that Papa would stop changing the subject.

"They were … all over the place." Papa stared off into the distance, seeing something that Louis would probably never see for himself. "Some were crazy, others dangerous, and quite a few made no sense whatsoever."

"Not much has changed, huh?" That sounded like what was going on right now. Maybe having crazy opponents just came with the territory.

Papa nodded. "Be careful. I don't want any of you getting hurt."

"Ladybug always heals everything." That was his job after all.

"He might not always be there." Papa stared off into space for a bit before raising his newspaper back up. Sensing that the conversation was over, Louis wandered off.

He hadn't learned much, but at least he had learned something. Some of the things that Papa had said didn't make any sense.

The only reason he wouldn't show up was if he lost his earrings to Papillion. Or if he was sick or something. But most people didn't talk about that happening. Everyone just assumed that they would win. Papa on the other hand had acted like it was only a matter of time before he lost a fight. But the old Ladybug had never lost a fight. Why would he?

It just didn't make sense. But not a lot of things made sense anymore. Louis was discovering that unfortunately, that was just how life worked.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

They were calling him Papillion returned. They were saying that Ladybug and Chat Noir hadn't done their job right the first time. They were wrong. He and Marinette had done nothing wrong the first time. They had just been a little too late to discover just who their opponent was, that's all.

It stung to be called the very villain that he worked so hard to stop. It hurt to be compared to a man who he hated. But that was just all the more reason to get this job done quickly. He couldn't let the ignorant words of people who didn't know any better distract him from his goal. They didn't know the whole story.

Marinette. Marinette was worth everything that he was doing. All he needed were the ring and earrings. He would just be reclaiming what had once been theirs. Once he got it, he could make his family whole again. He needed her. He needed things to return to normal soon.

Adrien sent his mind through his butterflies in Paris, watching, waiting, searching for an opportunity. There. He found one.

"Hello Matchrimony, I have a proposal for you."

Maybe this woman would be the one to succeed.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Emma collapsed on her bed, completely worn out. Learning how to balance school, home, and superheroing was hard and exhausting. Papillion was sending out akumas every day. Today had been no exception. At least Aunt Alya and Uncle Nino could look after Marie while she was at school. That was one less thing to worry about.

Papa was absent yet again. She worried about him during the akuma attacks sometimes, if she had time to worry about that sort of thing, which wasn't very often in the heat of battle. She had no idea where he worked (now that she thought about it, that was unusual, but the topic had just never come up), so there was no way to figure out how much the chaos was affecting him. For all Emma knew, he could work in an underground bunker, and that was the reason why he didn't seem to notice that the akuma attacks were becoming more and more frequent. And more and more dangerous.

Emma missed her old Papa. The one who was always hanging about the house, ready with a pun or joke, and always willing to help with homework. But that Papa seemed to be banished to the same golden memories that Maman lived in. Now, Emma was the one taking Maman and Papa's place. She was the one helping with homework and teasing and comforting Hugo when she got the chance. Which wasn't very often with how busy she was. She wasn't sure if she could fill such big shoes.

All she wanted to do was sleep. But noise permeated every inch of the house leaving no place for Emma to explore her newfound love of naps. Plagg yelled at her, asking for cheese, the radio yelled with the constant panicked chatter which had ingrained itself in Paris, Marie just plain yelled with lungs that seemed too big for her body.

Emma cursed Papillion, whoever he was, for making such a mess of her life.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Hugo hadn't meant to get caught in the latest akuma attack. He had just wanted to go over to Clement's house and play Ultimate Mecha Strike VI with him. Now, instead of joking with his friend while playing video games, he was running away from the onslaught of Paris' latest monster.

It wasn't fun.

He looked back. Oh shit. The monster was coming his way. Oh shit.

Where were Ladybug and Chat Noire when you needed them? Panzerman was looking right at him and he was pointing that big gun in his direction.

Oh shit, oh shit.

He was going to die, and even though Ladybug brought back anyone who died, he didn't want to experience that any time soon.

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shitohshitohshit, oh shit?

Hugo's panicked thoughts abruptly stopped as a a butterfly mask appeared over the akuma's face and Panzerman turned away. What was that all about? Nothing like that had ever happened before. By all accounts, he should be nothing more than a smear on the pavement right now. So just what had happened? Not that he was upset, just confused. He was as glad to be alive as the next parisian, at least the ones who were still alive that was.

He was still mulling over what had happened a few minutes later when Ladybug and Chat Noir showed up (finally), and got him to safety.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

His son, his son, had almost gotten hurt. What was Hugo doing out there? Why hadn't the boy been more careful? If Adrien hadn't been able to stop the akuma in the nick of time, his son could've been killed.

He needed them to be safe. He couldn't have his children dieing because of him. Even if Ladybug could bring back the dead now, there would come a day when he wouldn't be able to.

Adrien needed to keep a closer eye on his children, even if that meant it would be longer until he got what he wanted. He had to make sure that they wouldn't get hurt.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

When Papa started to be more worried after Hugo's close call, Emma was hopeful that he would start to show more interest in other aspects of their life, like keeping house, for example. She was tired of taking care of everything by herself.

Unfortunately, it didn't actually work out that way. It just became harder to sneak out and do her job as Chat Noir.

Papa wanted to know where they were at all times. He wanted them to communicate their locations to him even when he was at work, and he instituted a way stricter curfew. Emma wanted to tell herself that he was just being paranoid, but she knew that he had a point with akuma attacks happening so often. She didn't know whether to feel happy that he was actually paying attention and caring about what was happening, or to feel because she couldn't save Paris if she couldn't get out of the house. It was all just strangely frustrating.

Plagg was always encouraging her to relax more and take less upon herself, which was all fine and dandy when she was Chat Noir, but when she was Emma, too much was resting on her shoulders. She didn't have time to take time off when there was so much resting on her shoulders. Little bits of Chat Noir did make their way into her life regardless.

She found that it was more natural to take a supporting role in class projects instead of taking control like she usually did. She was making more jokes (Plagg was rubbing off on her with those horrible puns) and laughing more. She also started taking a lot more naps. Naps were a wonderful treasure in her hectic world. How had she not noticed them before now?

It wasn't that she had stopped being Emma, she had just changed and become someone new and a little different. And, maybe, she liked this new Chat-Emma just a little better than what she had been before.

.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Louis was all but banging his head against his desk when trying to figure out his physics homework when he heard a loud crash from Emma's room next door. Glad for a distraction of any sort, he hurried in, finding Chat Noir standing over the broken remains of her science project. The ring on her finger gave a warning beep.

"You cataclysmed your project?" Louis asked, even though he knew the answer.

"Yeah," Emma said softly. "It wasn't cooperating."

"That doesn't mean that you should destroy it, now you'll have to start all over again." This entire experience felt surreal, Louis wasn't supposed to be the voice of reason. That was usually Emma's job, yet here they were, the tables turned.

Emma gave a wry laugh. "It sure felt good, though."

Louis could understand that. He could name quite a few times when he had wanted to do something like that.

"Shouldn't you, you know," he shrugged and gestured to her costume.

Emma noded. "I should." She looked down at her costume as if seeing it for the first time. "Claws in." They both ignored Plagg as he popped out and started grumping about in the background.

"So what were you supposed do for this anyway?" Louis moved over to her desk and started looking through the papers on it. They had different teachers for science.

"We're building trebuchets."

"I don't know much, but I can try to help. And who knows," Louis winked, "Maybe all you need is a little luck."

Emma gave a laugh, a real one this time. "Maybe."

"This was always the sort of thing that Papa loved to help with," Louis said as he swept the barely recognisable collection of broken parts into the trash can.

"Yeah, I'd ask him for help, but he's never around anymore." Emma said wistfully.

"Uh huh." Sometimes it felt like they had lost both parents, and not just Mama. But Louis didn't like to dwell on those sort of thoughts. He would much rather live life in the present, not the past. "So, what do you need help with?" he asked cheerfully, trying to change the subject.

Louis spent that evening helping Emma fix her project. It was strange how being Chat Noir and Ladybug was changing them. Emma never would've done anything like this without Plagg's influence (Louis was pretty sure that destroying the trebuchet had been his idea). And if she had, Louis probably wouldn't have stepped in to help her. Tikki hadn't even needed to be the little voice of reason in his head this time.

Aunt Alya and Uncle Nino had just told him the other day that he was finally stepping up and acting responsibly. His friends and teachers were making similar observations more and more often. (They were more than a little surprised at his newfound tendency to take the lead.) Even Hugo looked up from whatever video game he was playing to to mention that Lois wasn't nearly as much fun as he used to be. (Louis wasn't sure if that was a compliment or not.) He could only guess that similar things were happening to Emma.

Papa didn't act like he noticed anything was different. But they rarely saw Papa anymore, let alone spoke to him. Louis honestly wouldn't be surprised to learn that Papa lived at wherever it was that he worked.

Louis wondered if Papa even noticed that his children were changing at all.

* * *

Adrien hoped that he could overwhelm Ladybug and Chat Noir, but they fought and defeated every akuma he sent at them with ease. They were young, no older than he or Marinette had been (what was with the guardian and choosing children to be heroes?) but they learned so quickly, always gaining the upper hand, no matter what cards he held. Those children, his nemeses, were preventing him from gaining the power he needed.

They thwarted every move he made. They destroyed any attempt he made to intimidate Paris or to turn the city against them. They saved the day again and again and again, never failing to solidify their position as heroes in the eyes of the public.

They couldn't keep winning forever. He had to succeed in his mission. He had to. He refused to give up, to admit defeat, to let these children come between him and his goal. Their miraculouses would be his. They had to be.

* * *

Emma cursed her bad luck. Of all the days for there to be an attack, Papillion had to choose their birthday. Couldn't the man take a break for once? Admittedly, there were akuma attacks every day, sometimes more than once, but a girl could still hope. It wasn't that they had anything special going on in the first place, but it was the idea of the whole thing that she found insulting. Louis didn't seem to mind to much, but nothing really bother Louis. Sometimes Emma wished that she could have his level of nonchalance.

They defeated the akuma quickly, but the annoyance lingered throughout the day.

Aunt Alya and Uncle Nino threw them a little birthday dinner party. It was just family, but Papa didn't even show up. They had cake and presents, and stayed up late watching a cheesy movie, but without Papa there, it felt like they were just going through the motions.

Papa never showed up anymore. He had forgotten about her birthday. He had never forgotten something like this before. If grief was what did this to him, Emma hated grief. She hated the thing that had taken two parents from her when death had only taken one. She hated it.

That night, sitting on the rooftops with Louis, Emma looked up at the stars and promised that she would never let grief turn her into something she wasn't.

Grief might've conquered Papa, but it would never conquer her. She was a superhero afterall.

* * *

 **AN: So… Angst, anyone? I'm currently undecided on whether or not Gabriel Agreste is Hawkmoth/Papillion, so in this AU, we have no idea who Papillion/Hawkmoth is. Anyway, in this fic I wanted to explore the idea that maybe Adrien isn't the complete antithesis of his Father and maybe he just needed a push in the right direction to become like him. Now, I'm not saying that I think that Adrien is going to turn into the two (maybe one) men that he hates the most when Marinette dies. I'm just exploring possibilities.**

 **I also wanted to explore the ideas of second-generation Ladybug and Chat Noir, namely Emma and Louis. Sorry, Hugo and Marie didn't really play a big role in this story, so we don't get to know them as well. Also, I happen to be a sucker for DjWifi if you couldn't tell.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the read. I have some sketches of Emma and Louis and their superhero forms which I'm going to post to my tumblr(eventually, hopefully sooner rather than later), so check me out there. I go by havendance. :)**


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